Former Chair City attorney protests, is arrested at Moral Monday

At least one Davidson County resident has participated in the ongoing Moral Monday protests that have captured the attention of so many North Carolinians and citizens and media nationwide.

BY NASH DUNNThe Dispatch

At least one Davidson County resident has participated in the ongoing Moral Monday protests that have captured the attention of so many North Carolinians and citizens and media nationwide.Former long-time Thomasville attorney Bill Weldon demonstrated and was arrested June 24 in Raleigh after protesting against new policies and laws being driven by the Republican-led Legislature.More than 800 people have been arrested at the Legislative Building as a form of civil disobedience since the Moral Monday protests began in April. The protests, organized by the North Carolina NAACP and other state and national groups, have criticized decisions of Republican lawmakers and centered on a bill that would bar sex-selective abortions, a voter ID proposal, the rejection of Medicaid expansion under Obamacare and cuts to unemployment insurance, among other issues.Weldon, who lives in Thomasville, said he made a conscious decision to be arrested in an act of civil disobedience after reading about the list of bills and proposals he said went "on, and on, and on."Weldon said some Republicans are pushing some bills, such as a private-school vouchers measure, that he called an "erosion of public education," something he is very passionate about. The bill would use millions of dollars in taxpayer money to help pay private school tuition for low-income families."I have no illusion that my actions or the actions of the other 800 people that have been arrested are going to change the point of view or voting of any present legislator," Weldon said. "But if we can increase the public awareness of what this Legislature is doing, I'm satisfied with that."The Moral Monday protests have been discussed nationwide by politicians and via media outlets in recent weeks. The New York Times wrote an editorial July 9 that was critical of the decisions Republicans have made and referred to the state's government as a "demolition derby," "tearing down years of progress in public education, tax policy, racial equality in the courtroom and access to the ballot." Gov. Pat McCrory responded to the editorial, titled "The Decline of North Carolina," on Friday.Sen. Stan Bingham, R-Davidson, said the best approach is kindness, courtesy and debate, something he doesn't see with the Moral Monday protestors."To hoot, holler and raise Cain is not appropriate," Bingham said. "There is philosophical debate about what should be done with these things."Bingham, who is serving his seventh term in the Senate, has introduced more than a dozen bills this session. He said earlier this year that most of them were measures he drafted during the Democratic-led legislatures of the past.Any time there is change, there is resistance, Bingham said, and this is no different."The best approach would be to come in, debate and discuss, but their argument is that there is no reason to debate because our mind is already made up, and that's not true," Bingham said. "I don't know that I could individually change it, but all the legislators are good listeners."General Assembly police have arrested Moral Monday demonstrators who refuse to disperse from the legislative building. Weldon, the only Davidson County citizen who has been arrested thus far, was charged with violating legislative building rules, failure to disperse on command and second-degree trespassing, all misdemeanor charges. Weldon, a former Marine and Vietnam veteran, said he did participate in a demonstration once before in Raleigh after returning home from war. His late older sister, Nanci Wilson, who was arrested during a sit-in in Chapel Hill in 1964, was a big influence on him in his decision to perform civil disobedience. Weldon's younger sister, Alice Weldon, was also arrested alongside him June 24."Once I made that decision I felt a since of peace that I rarely feel," Weldon said of deciding to be arrested. "That feeling stayed with me the whole weekend, on Monday and until the next day when life got back to normal."Nash Dunn can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 227, or at nash.dunn@the-dispatch.com. Follow Nash on Twitter: @LexDispatchNash

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.